The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #88017   Message #1650056
Posted By: Genie
17-Jan-06 - 04:41 AM
Thread Name: What can you Not write songs about?
Subject: RE: What can you Not write songs about?
I just remembered the song "Timothy," which was popular on radio in the 1960s or early '70s. (I can't recall who sang it.)   It told the story of 3 miners (?) trapped beneath the ground. One dies and the other 2 had to resort to cannibalizing him to survive.

It didn't take long for the censors (or public outcry?) to force them to change a few words in the song, thus changing the 'meat' of the story. (Pun noted but not intended.)

The original line was, "... One is enough to eat for two ..." and it was changed to "... Water enough to drink for two ..." intimating that the two survivors had kept the water for themselves, thus causing Timothy's death (but removing the cannibalism reference). I guess the original lyrics suggested that they had killed Timothy and then eaten him.

The hook line of the chorus, IIRC, was
"Timothy, Timothy,
Lord, what did we do!!??"

Anyway, this one seems to lie in that area of "things you can't sing about" -- unless you want to turn off most of the listeners.